LIMA, OHIO (WLIO) - A picture is worth a thousand words, but for those battling addiction, a brush and canvas can say so much more.
The Allen County Treatment Court, Lighthouse Peer Support Center, and the Allen, Auglaize, and Hardin County Mental Health and Recovery Services Board are hosting a show with artwork done by people that are in recovery. The artists are finding or using some hidden talent for painting that they may not have explored before or have forgotten while they were trapped in their addiction. For people in recovery, art helps them express themselves in ways they couldn’t before.
For people in recovery, art helps them express themselves in ways they couldn’t before.
“When you can’t find a way to express yourself verbally, you can put it on a canvas and be able to translate that and release those feelings through a painting. It’s really good to have that extra option to go to when you want to release stress or are feeling some kind of way; you have a way to escape from it and put it on the canvas,” says Christopher Akers, who teaches an art class at Lighthouse.
Besides looking at the art, Akers hopes that people will come out to see that recovery from an addiction is possible.
“To be able to come from some of the places we have been, the dark places to now, has been a really true blessing. It’s all done through the help of a drug court, Judge Reed’s Drug Court, probation, the Lighthouse, and God. God has been our biggest supporter. He definitely has a plan for us all, and I think this is part of it,” adds Akers.
The Art at Its Fullest reception will be tomorrow night from 5 to 7 pm at the Lighthouse Peer Support Center, which was the Knights of Columbus Hall at 810 S. Cable Road. The public is welcome to come check out the artistic talents of people in recovery.
